Need
by luli27
Summary: Three shot songfic about Mark and Lexie getting back together. Obviously it is now AU, so it's set before the last few eps of season 8.
1. All We'd Ever Need

**Need**

**Disclaimer:** No, they're not mine, if they were that ... travesty of a finale would have never, ever happened.

**A/N:** It's been a while since I posted but between RL and that finale, I haven't had time or the inclination to write. I actually started this story before the finale but afterwards I didn't even want to think about this show, much less write about it but there's been enough time now that I find I wanted to write again. This will be three chapters, the next one is done and the third one is all but done so there shouldn't be much of a wait. I have an idea for another one shot but I don't when or if I'll get to it because right now I'm completely obsessed with my first love: Bones. So, I think I'm going to finally write that sequel I've promised for a long time now. Anyway, we'll see what happens. I have no beta, so please forgive any errors and let me know what you think.

* * *

_Boy it's been all this time  
And I can't get you off my mind  
And nobody knows it but me_

"Grey, you're going to be late," Bailey said when Lexie rushed by the nurse's station.

"No, no, I won't" Lexie said as she reached the door to the residents' locker room. "I'll just be a sec," she called out as she walked in.

"Hey, Lex," Meredith smiled at her sister. "You overslept, huh?" she asked.

"Yeah," Alex grinned at the younger Grey. "I bet she was out partying late last night. Right, Lexie?"

"I wish," Lexie answered. She managed to throw a smile in Alex's direction. "No, I … just lost of track of time this morning. But I'll be ready in a sec."

"Well, you better hurry," Meredith told her before she followed the rest of the residents out of the door. "I'll try to stall Bailey for you," she offered with one last smile.

"Thanks," Lexie told her. She waited until everyone else had left before she finally let the smile she didn't feel fall from her face. She hung her bag on her locker and started to take her coat off but she stopped in the middle of it and just closed her eyes. She knew she had no time to lose but she just couldn't seem to muster the energy that morning.

She had had a late night but it wasn't partying that had kept her awake, it had been remembering that today was the anniversary of the night she went to Mark's hotel and seduced him by asking him to teach her. That had been three years ago and it had been more than two since they've been together for any significant amount of time. By any standard that was more than enough time to get over him and she was sure everyone but a handful of people, believed that she _was_ over him. But she wasn't.

For a long time she'd believed that she could get over him but she'd just spent the last few weeks coming to terms with the fact that getting over him was just not possible. She still loved him and always would because he was the love of her life. That meant he was never far from her thoughts but last night she hadn't been able to stop to thinking about him and remembering all the good times they'd had together.

_I stare at your photograph  
Still sleep in the shirt you left  
And nobody knows it but me  
Everyday I wipe my tears away_

She sighed softly before she opened her eyes and hurried to finish changing. She was done a few moments later and, placing her stethoscope around her neck, she turned to leave. She'd only taken a couple of steps, however, when she hesitated. After a short internal, battle, she turned back to her locker and, after looking in her bag, took out the photograph she'd spent most of the night before staring at. It was one of the last photos taken before Sloan's arrival in their lives had torn their relationship apart; it showed her and Mark together, happy and in love. It had been stashed away in a box in her closet with other odds and ends from their time together and Lexie had all but forgotten it.

She'd found it by accident the night before when, in a fit of melancholy, and figuring that if she couldn't have his arms around her she could at least wrapped herself in something that had once been his, she went looking for an old t-shirt of his to sleep in. Wearing the t-shirt had turned out to be both comforting and disconcerting as it had prompted an almost never-ending stream of memories of her history with Mark.

Thanks to her photographic memory, those memories had been crystal clear and had made her cry, smile and miss him even more even as she cherished them. They had made for a night had been long and more than a little bittersweet and had made her wonder whether having a photographic memory was a gift or a curse.

A noise reminded her that she was in the hospital and about to be late for her shift. With a sigh, she put away the photograph and then wiped off the lone tear that had escaped down her cheek. She knew she was risking Bailey's wrath, but she still took the time to center herself and push all the memories and wishes and regrets into a tiny a corner of her mind.

_So many nights I've prayed for you to say  
I should've been chasing you  
I should've been trying to prove  
That you were all that mattered to me  
_

The short, pithy but blistering lecture she received from Bailey set the tone for the day that followed: a little depressing, somewhat aggravating and completely miserable. Just getting through it was such a chore that for the first time since she graduated med school, she was actually glad she didn't have any surgery and instead got to spend the whole day doing paperwork. It was one thing to let the boring details of paperwork numb her mind but she wasn't in any shape to operate and be responsible for anyone's life.

The paperwork was time consuming and barely gave her any time to take a calm and relaxing breath and yet it was a struggle to not dwell on what had been, what no longer was and what she wished could be again. Her concentration was so tenuous that any little thing could break it and her mind immediately went back to Mark whenever that happened. Unlike the night before, however, she spent most of the day not reliving the good times they'd had but instead kicking herself for not listening to Mark and not giving him a chance all those times he'd gone to her to try and make things right.

At the time she hadn't realized and, certainly hadn't appreciated, how much courage and determination it took for him to keep coming back, be vulnerable and offer her his heart when she kept rejecting him time and time again. And she knew he would have kept coming back, trying to convince her that he loved her and that she should give their relationship another chance if she hadn't stopped him by telling him that his continued pursuit was hurting her. It was her pain that finally made him end his efforts, not his own.

He once told her that when he liked someone, he made sure to tell her of his interest because life was too short to live otherwise. That was back before they really knew each other. In the years since, she'd seen first hand on more than one occasion just how committed he was to that philosophy in all areas of his life not just the romantic part. When he wanted something he went for it - no doubts, no hesitation, no worries that he wouldn't get it or that he wasn't worth it. That confidence, that bordered and sometimes crossed into arrogance, was a strong part of his appeal.

_I should've said all the things that I kept inside of me  
And maybe I could've made you believe  
That what we had was all we'd ever need_

She's always admired and respected that attitude. She'd had in fact even envied it a little at times but never more so than right then when it was _her_ turn to go to him, hat in hand, to bare her soul and offer her heart. It was her turn to try and convince him that she loved him still and that they should be together. It was one of life's little ironies that now that she's convinced they're soul mates he seemed to have finally let her go.

But she hadn't been able to gather her courage to go to him and tell him of her feelings. She'd lost her nerve every time she'd even come close to finally confessing to him how she really felt. And the fact that she hadn't been able to even do it once when he'd done it multiple times made her sad and angry and ashamed; and it made her wonder if she even deserved to have another chance with him.

Whether she deserved it or not, she knew that if she didn't at least tried, she would never forgive herself. And even if there was to be no second chance for the two of them, he deserved to know her change of heart. She owed it to him, and to herself, to be honest and to tell him, at least once, what was really in her heart and to try to convince him that all she needed to be happy was to be with him. It might be one of the hardest things she'd ever have to do but she will do it. Who cared about life plans, unknown or unplanned daughters or even an easy life, if they were together they could get through anything. Who wanted an easy life anyway?

_My friends think I'm moving on  
But the truth is I'm not that strong  
And nobody knows it but me_

"Hey," Derek as he slapped Mark on the shoulder before stopping next to him by the nurse's station.

"Hey," Mark answered, briefly glancing up from the chart he was working on. "What's up?"

"Nothing much," Derek answered. He nodded to the nurse on duty and handed her his paperwork before he turned to Mark. "Slow day today," he commented. "Nothing but paperwork. No surgeries."

"I guess not even you can operate everyday, huh?" Mark replied with a smirk.

"Guess not," Derek easily agreed. "So, how's Julia doing?"

"Fine," Mark answered, staring intently at his chart. "Julia's doing just fine."

"Good," Derek smiled. "So, I was thinking that maybe you and her and Meredith and I could go out to dinner sometime."

"Uh," Mark shot him a surprise look. "You thought that? And what does Meredith think about it?"

"Haven't really talked to her about it yet," Derek shrugged. "But I'm sure she'll be all for it. We both love Zola but I think we're both ready for an evening spent in adult company. All we need would be to find a babysitter but I'm sure Lexie would be happy to baby-sit for us. She volunteered to baby-sit on Valentine's day because she enjoys spending time with her niece. It'd just have to be on a night she's free."

"I see … well, I have Sophia at night on a regular basis so…"

"Of course," Derek nodded. "It'd have to on a night you don't have her. Why don't you check what works for you and Julia and let me know. We'll work something out."

"Sure, yeah," Mark said, keeping his eyes firmly on his chart, not daring to meet his best friend's eyes. "I'll let you know."

"Good," Derek said before looking at his watch. "Well, I have a little time now and I was thinking of going to the daycare and spend some time with my daughter. Want to come?"

"Sure," Mark nodded. "I just have to finish this chart. I'll meet you down there." He waited until Derek was gone before he let the smile he'd fixed on his face fade.

Derek hadn't known that he'd brought up two of the things guaranteed to sour Mark's good mood: his relationship with Julia and Lexie. He couldn't have known because Mark had used all his not inconsiderable talent to make sure neither Derek nor anyone else would even suspect that he still loved Lexie.

_And I've kept all the words you said  
In a box underneath my bed  
And nobody knows it but me_

Letting go of Lexie had been the hardest thing he'd ever done but though he'd done it, he hadn't stopped loving her. The heart wanted what the heart wanted and not even his willpower was enough to change that. That didn't mean, however, that he wanted everyone to know of his struggle so he'd done what he'd always done best: he'd donned a mask that let everyone else see only what he wanted them to see – that he was over Lexie.

He'd done such a good job of acting as if he was over her that from time to time he even fooled himself into believing it. Those times never lasted long, however; it was never more than a few weeks before the reality of who held his heart once more became impossible to deny. He tried his best not to dwell on it, though. Nothing but pain came out of that line of thought.

Before Julia and the distraction she presented, not dwelling had been harder. Despite his best efforts, he'd somehow always ended up going back over their relationship, what he'd done, what he hadn't done, what he'd done right and what he'd done wrong. He'd even, and this had been a real blow to his manly pride, kept a memento box buried in the back of his closet, which he'd taken out from time to time to moon over like a silly schoolgirl. And that was a tidbit he intended to take with him to the grave.

Reliving those moments, however, had done nothing but give him pain ultimately. He'd all but stopped doing it before he met Julia. And he'd stopped completely, after they started dating. It was one thing to date one woman while he was trying to get over another but to actively pine for the other seemed plain felt like a betrayal to both of them and the new man he'd started to be when he was with Lexie balked at consciously betraying anyone.

___But if you're happy __  
I'll get through somehow  
But the truth is  
I've been screaming out_  


Of course, not thinking about Lexie was easier said than done, especially when something unexpected happened to remind him of her. Like the night before when he noticed the date while he was checking his schedule and remembered that it was the anniversary of the night she came to his hotel room and undressed as she asked him to teach her. That was all that was needed for the memories to come flooding back as if it all had happened yesterday.

The strength of the memories and of the feelings they invoked had shattered his belief that he was finally moving on and could have a future with Julia. He'd woken up that morning conflicted about what was the right and wrong thing to do in that situation and about what he should and what he wanted to do about it. Julia's feelings were already stronger than his and he'd been fine continuing as they were when he thought there was a chance that he could at some point feel the same for her. But now that he was pretty sure that was never going to happen, he wasn't sure he could or even should continue with the relationship when that would only give Julia false hope. And now, given Derek's plan for a double date, he also had to worry about what he was going to tell him to get out of it.

He thought he was done with the uncertainty and the constant fight with his feelings, which was both painful and incredibly frustrating. He was used to knowing his own mind, knowing what he wanted and what he had to do to get it. And, perhaps more importantly, he wasn't used to taking anyone's feelings into account when deciding how to live his life. For most of his life he'd only care about the opinion of two people, Derek and Mrs. Sheppard and yet, he'd slept with Derek's wife because, at the time, he thought that he was in love with Addison and that she was more important than his relationship with the man than had been his best friend since childhood. Of course, things with Addison had gone nowhere and in the end he'd ended up moving across the country to try to fix his friendship with Derek because he realized that that was the most important relationship he had.

But then he met and fell in love with Lexie and she became the most important person in his life as he discovered what it meant to really love someone. He discovered, much to his surprised amazement, that it meant putting someone else's well being and happiness above his own. For a man used to worrying only about what _he_ wanted, going after it and getting it, finding out that he was capable of voluntarily walking away from it had come as nothing less than complete shock. And the fact was that he'd never wanted anything as much as he wanted Lexie – except for wanting her to be happy. He wanted her to be happy even if to ensure it he had to sacrifice his own happiness. That was the only reason he'd walked away from her and hadn't interfered with her relationship with Jackson. Loving her as he did, he could do nothing else after she told him that loving him wasn't good for her but being with Jackson was.

_I should've been chasing you  
I should've been trying to prove  
That you were all that mattered to me_

And yet, the part of him that had demanded he be the best in his chosen field, the part of him that had always driven him to obtain whatever he'd gone after and that had never let him give up or give in, that part still wasn't reconciled to the fact that he'd lost her. That part of him was still sure that if he'd just tried a little harder to convince her that they were meant to be together, they would still _be_ together; that if he'd just kept at it a little longer, he could and would have found the way to prove to her that everything they'd been through, all the obstacles they'd faced, the hurt and misunderstandings, none of that mattered if at the end of the day they faced them together.

In fact, he was just coming to realize that that part of him would never fully accept that the one person he loved the most, next to his daughter, won't ever be his again. If despite months of being in a committed relationship with a wonderful, loving woman like Julia he was every bit in much in love with Lexie as he'd been they day they broke up, then it was time, probably past time, to face the fact that there was just no getting over Lexie Grey. He should just admit to himself, even if to no one else, that Lexie was the love of his life because, God knew, denying it had gotten him nowhere. What to do after finally giving up on the dream that was moving on and having a future and a life that did not include her, however, was the real dilemma. As long as he'd had the illusion of waking up one day no longer loving her, he could pretend that he could one day be completely happy once more. But if he didn't have that, then he couldn't in good conscious continue his relationship with Julia. And if he didn't have either of those things, then what he did have? Other than an empty, lonely life.

With a forlorn sigh, he handed the chart he'd been working on to the nurse on duty and left towards the daycare. He pushed his hands into his pockets and walked with his head down. He'd liked nothing more than to say 'to hell with everything' and go running after Lexie, pulled her into his arms and kissed her like there was no tomorrow and then spend the rest of the day or week proving how much he loved and needed her. But he was really done with the whole handing her his heart in a silver platter only for her to return it all bruised and broken; she had already made it more than clear that she thought loving him was poison to her and that she would rather have an uncomplicated relationship with Jackson than being with him. And even if that relationship was no more, her point still stood – she didn't want him.

_I should've said all the things  
That I kept inside of me  
And maybe I could've made you believe  
That what we had was all we'd ever need _

And still, there were moments when all he wanted to do was to go to her and make her listen to everything he felt for her, everything he'd always wanted to tell her but had never been able to properly expressed, until she was as convinced as he was that they belonged together. In fact, if he thought that a little of forceful handling would get her to see things like he did, he would even try that. But he was pretty sure that that wouldn't go over too well; if she didn't want to be with him, forcing her to listen to him wouldn't do anything but pushed her even further away.

When he reached the elevator, he irately pushed the button to call for it and walked in, leaned against the back wall and dropped his head against it. For a fleeting moment he missed the days when he would sleep with any woman that crossed his path and caught his fancy without wanting or needing anything but the pleasure of the moment. It was true that those encounters hadn't fulfilled him emotionally but they also hadn't left him broken hearted and destroyed. Then again, he tried that already when he and Lexie first broke up and it hadn't really helped him at all. The momentary pleasure had been more ephemeral than ever before and when it passed, he hadn't only felt empty and alone but also guilty and ashamed. One night stands hadn't helped him forget Lexie anymore than a committed relationship or time had.

Whether he liked it or not, his time with Lexie had made him be honest about his feelings and one night stands were no longer part of his life. And if truth be told he was happy about it, he would just be happier if he could be with Lexie. When the elevator got to his floor, he pushed away from the wall with an impatient huff and walked out, more than a little annoyed with himself. All of this circular thinking was getting him nowhere. Things were what they were and no amount of thinking or wishing they were different would do anything but give him a headache and put him in an awful mood. What he had to do now was choose what he wanted to do about them. He had to decide if he wanted to stay and build a life with the one woman who was offering the future he'd always wanted or if he wanted to stay true to the only woman who'd given him everything he always needed, even if they would never be together. He had to decide what was more important to him: living the 'American dream', regardless of with whom he lived it, or being true to his feelings, even if that meant staying alone. _  
_

_Oh what we had, what we had  
It was all we'd ever need  
_


	2. Need You Now

**Need**

**Disclaimer:** No, they're not mine, if they were that ... travesty of a finale would have never, ever happened.

**A/N:** I forgot to mention last chapter that the songs aren't mine either; they just really made me think of M/L every time I heard them, until finally I had to use them. As before, I have no beta, so any mistakes, cause as much as I tried I might not have caught everything, are mine. I might Hope you enjoy this chapter as much as the last one. Please, let me know what you think.

* * *

**Chapter 2**

___Picture perfect memories  
Scattered all around the floor_

After the long, exhausting, miserable day finally ended, Lexie went home and forced herself to eat the sandwich she'd bought in the cafeteria before leaving the hospital. She wasn't really hungry but she'd been so late that morning that she'd had to skip breakfast and for lunch all she had was an orange and she was starting to feel a little dizzy. When she was done, she took a shower and then went straight to bed. All she wanted was to sleep and to stop thinking, remembering and wishing even if it was for just a few hours. And since she'd had practically no sleep the night before, she figured she had a good shot of getting at least 8 straight.

But like all good plans, that one didn't really work out like she wanted. She was able to sleep but it was only for a couple hours and then she was back to tossing and turning and staring at her ceiling well before dawn. When she finally gave up on trying to sleep, she flung the covers off, got up and walked to the closet to take out the shoebox that contained all the photos of her and Mark that she'd put away after they broke up. She went back to the bed, sat Indian style and balanced the box on her knees; for long moments she just stared at the lid, running her fingertips along the edges until she yanked it off and threw it over the side of the bed in one smooth motion.

She stroked her fingers over the photos before she took them out one handful at a time and then threw the box after the lid. She laid the photos out on the bed and grouped them by occasion until there was a photographic timeline of her relationship with Mark spread out across her bed. She didn't really need the visual reminder since almost every moment spent with him was seared into her memory, but seeing their relationship displayed out in front of her all at once made the pain of losing it all the more acute. Suddenly the pain got to be too much and the tears started to pour down her face so she brought her knees up, hugged them to her chest and dropped her head on them.

___Reaching for the phone  
'cause I can't fight it anymore  
And I wonder if I ever cross your mind  
For me it happens all the time  
_

When she finally calmed down, she looked up and wiped her cheeks clean. The tears had brought her some relief but the ache of missing Mark still remained. That was an ache she knew very well since she'd been living with it for what seemed like forever and all of a sudden she couldn't take it anymore. She just wanted, no, she needed to hear his voice. Without allowing herself to think twice about it, she reached for her phone and started to punch in Mark's number but when it came time to hit send, she hesitated. She stayed there with her finger frozen over the send key for an endless moment but in the end she couldn't do it; she just didn't have the guts to call him up out of nowhere in the middle of the night.

She threw the phone onto her bed with a frustrated sigh, jumped up and, without looking at the mess of photographs on her bed, she started to pace up and down her room. She hugged her arms tight around her torso to comfort herself but it didn't really help because all she wanted was to feel Mark's arms. She angrily wiped her cheeks when she realized that she was crying once more. She really needed to make a decision and stick to it because she really couldn't go on like this; she wasn't really sleeping, she was barely eating and it was all she could do to keep her mind on her work and away from Mark. How was she supposed to learn to be a great surgeon if instead of listening to the attendings she was moping over Mark?

All of her pacing brought her back to the side of her bed and she stopped there, staring at the photos. God, they looked good together – happy and in love; it was hard for her to grasp just how it all went so wrong when she knew the love had been real on both sides. She reached down and picked up a photo of them at Joe's and couldn't help but wonder whether Mark ever thought of her or if he had truly and completely gotten over her. She didn't like even thinking about the possibility that he might no longer love her but it was hard to ignore the possibility when she saw how happy he seemed to be with Julia or when she heard about him making plans for the future with her. She dropped the photo back on the bed and wiped her cheek clean one more time.

Okay, enough was enough; if she was going to act, then she just needed to do it and get it over with. After all, the worst that could happen would be for him to tell her that he no longer loved her and was instead in love with Julia. Well, he could also pity her and that might just be worse than him rejecting her. But even if either of those things happened, she would finally know where she stood and could stop agonizing about it. It would hurt, more than she'd been hurting, probably, but at least there would no longer be any more uncertainty. If he loved her still, then they could talk and work out all their issues, because God knew they still had them; and if he no longer loved her, well, then she'd know and would go on from there.

She didn't think she could ever get over him but if there was no doubt, if there was no longer any room to think he felt the same for her, then she would have to find some way to somehow move on. Maybe she could go work on another hospital; see if maybe she could still go to Mass General, followed Meredith and Derek to Boston. She gave an exasperated huff and dropped down onto the bed. She couldn't just transfer in the last year of her residency; even if she could it would probably be career suicide. No, she just had to stay at Seattle Grace; after all, it was only a little over a year until she'd too be taking the boards and then she could go wherever she wanted. Surely, she could do it; she could see the love of her life everyday, knowing that he no longer loved her and that he was building a life with someone else. Yeah, and she could also fly to the moon and back under her own power. With a groan she dropped back on the bed; so distraught at the thought of living without him the rest of her life that she didn't care she was smashing the photos she'd treated like precious mementos.

The thing that made everything worse, not that it could really get worse or hurt any more, was the fact that she couldn't even really blame him if he told her that he was over her and was now in love with Julia. Because, even though they had both made mistakes and they had both played a part in the implosion of their relationship, after it was over, both times, it had been him that had come after her; it had been him that had tried to make things right and it had been her that had, ultimately, shut the door on his face, both times. So really, what else was he supposed to do after she told him she _didn't_ want to love him and that he had to let her go? Was he supposed to just sit around and wait for her to change her mind? Is that what she wanted, for him to miserable and alone the rest of his life? No, she couldn't really blame him or begrudged him if he'd moved on but the fact that she'd have no one but herself to blame if she lost her chance to be with him ever again was more than a little infuriating. It just added guilt and a little shame on top of the heart break and misery. When that misery threatened to swamp her, she threw her arm over her eyes wishing she could block out reality as easily as she could block out her sight.

Maybe she wasn't supposed to blame him but damn it if a part of her didn't do exactly that because you weren't supposed to get over your soul mate, you weren't supposed to move on from the love of your life. And it really wouldn't be fair if he was able to forget her while she was finding that it was impossible to get over him. It'd just be more than a little ironic and a little tragic if the one person that fought the hardest against moving on was the one who did it while the one that told everyone she wanted to, didn't. Maybe she should just forget talking to him and avoid what would no doubt be the excruciating pain of hearing him say he no longer loved her. And God knew she had no right to mess with his life if he'd managed to move on with it. She didn't want to hurt him any more than she already had; she really only wanted him to be happy, even if it wasn't with her, and she really wasn't the type of girl to go after another woman's man. So, she should probably leave things as they were and try to go on with her life.

_And I need you now  
And I don't know how  
I can do without  
I just need you now_

Only she couldn't do that. She couldn't just go on with her life, ignoring the fact that she loved him and was slowly going crazy because of it. She'd been trying to do that but it didn't work; she _couldn't_ just ignore it. And the fact was that she didn't consider herself the other woman that was trying to steal someone else's man because she still, and probably would always, see Mark as hers. Julia might be his current girlfriend but they've been only going out for less than six months; they just didn't have the history or, Lexie was sure, the passion that Mark and Lexie shared. They hadn't gone through even half of what Lexie and Mark had gone through; and, if after all that time and everything they've been through, all that hurt, disappointments and misery, there was still even the smallest possibility that they still loved each other, then how could Lexie walk away from that? Julia was a good woman and, Lexie believed, that she genuinely cared for Mark but she didn't, she couldn't know him like Lexie did and she just couldn't love him like Lexie did. If Lexie achieved her goal and she and Mark got back together then Julia would probably end up being hurt and Lexie was sorry for that but that didn't mean she would or could walk away from him. She'd already tried it twice before and had roundly failed both times; and she just wasn't that noble that she'd tried a third time only to keep someone else from being hurt, not when there was a real chance that he still loved her.

Derek had told her that the only reason Mark was even considering moving ahead with his relationship with Julia was because he thought he no longer had a shot to have one with Lexie. That had to have meant that Derek thought Mark still loved her and if Derek thought that, then there was a better than good chance it was true because Derek knew Mark better than just about anyone, maybe even including Lexie. And if that was true, didn't she owe it to Mark and herself, to let him know what his options really were? Didn't she owe it to Julia too? After all, if Mark was still in love with Lexie, then what kind of future could they have? It might sound like she was rationalizing her choice, but the truth remained that it would be better for all concerned if Mark made an informed decision about his future instead of making it with key information missing. Besides, when the situations were reversed Mark hadn't stopped until she forced him to; he had had the courage to go to her and tell her face to face that he still loved her. How could she do anything less? She couldn't; she just couldn't even begin to try and put this all behind her until she'd confronted him with her feelings. Unless she did that, she would always wonder what if and that was no way to live; she would never forgive herself if she didn't do everything she could to give them another chance to make things work and increase that 3% chance of survival.

With sudden determination, she pushed up from the bed and marched to her closet where she stuffed her feet into her sneakers and threw on her coat. Afterwards, she strode towards the door, grabbing her car keys and wallet on the way. She walked through the silent house (everyone was either studying or sleeping and she was very glad for whichever it was) and out the front door without allowing herself to second guess what she was doing. It wasn't until she was halfway to his apartment that it occurred to her that Julia might be staying with him; but not even that unpleasant possibility was enough to make her turn around. She was determined to finally tell him how she felt and nothing, not her nerves nor his girlfriend, would stop her this time.

_Another shot of whiskey,  
can't stop looking at the door  
Wishing you'd come sweeping in  
the way you did before  
_

After a long day at work, Mark had only wanted to go home, get a drink and brood; unfortunately, he'd forgotten that he had dinner plans with Julia. And when she'd called to confirm the time they were meeting, he found himself confirming the plans instead of canceling like he really wanted to do. He'd been so distracted and absent minded, however, that it might have been better all around to just cancel. Julia had tried to engage him in conversation but as the night wore on and his reticence continued, she got progressively quieter so that when they left the restaurant, neither one was speaking. At first, she had thought that his absentmindedness was due to problems at work but by the time they were on the way her place, she suspected that something else was going on.

She hadn't been sure he'd want to go inside her apartment and had been surprised when he'd accepted. She'd led the way, anxious about what was happening; not quite sure what had changed but knowing something had. Once inside Mark, who had gone back and forth all day long about what he wanted to do, knew at once that there had never really been any choice; Julia was a great woman but she wasn't Lexie and he just couldn't build a life with a woman he didn't and would never love. It hadn't been easy, though Julia's temper made it a little easier, but in the end he broke up with her. Now there he was: at close to two in the morning, sitting, in the dark, on the floor of his living room, leaning against the foot of his sofa, wondering just what the hell to do next.

He glanced at the door and couldn't help but remember a similar door that he once opened to find a nervous but determined Lexie on the other side. That moment had irrevocably changed his life but as fondly as he remembered her asking him to teach her, he was even fonder of the moment he opened his apartment door to find her on the other side holding a toothbrush in one hand and a pair of panties on the other with her suitcase behind her. As exciting as the first night had been, the second time he found her outside his door was better because it meant that she wanted a committed relationship. What he wouldn't give to see her walk into the apartment after a long day at work or to find her curl up on the couch or puttering in the kitchen when he came home from work.

_And I wonder if I ever cross your mind  
For me it happens all the time  
_

He let his head fall onto the sofa cushion behind him with a curse. Damn it but he wished he could stop thinking about her, if only for a few hours. Even when he'd been convinced that he was over her and no longer actively thought of her, she'd always been in the back of his mind. The worse part was that he didn't even know whether she ever thought about him. Not that knowing whether she did or not would really make much of a difference. The fact was that they'd been broken up for a long time and thinking about her or not didn't change that.

Breaking up with Julia wouldn't change that fact either; just like Lexie breaking up with Jackson hadn't changed their status quo. The reasons they broke up, twice, hadn't really changed. At least, he didn't think they'd changed but then he'd never really understood, much less agreed with, them. Both times, it'd been Lexie that walked away, that had decided that they no longer worked. Though, to be perfectly accurate, what she had decided was that their relationship no longer worked for her.

Mark wasn't sure whether there was any difference between a relationship no longer working and it no longer working for just one of the couple. And he wasn't sure whether it really mattered because, either way, at the end of the day the relationship was over. Just like he and Lexie were over and had been for a long time. God, he was thinking in circles and giving himself one hell of a headache. He needed to stop thinking about her and about all this because he thought he might just go crazy if he didn't._  
_

___It's a quarter after one, I'm a little drunk  
And I need you now  
Said I wouldn't call  
But I've lost all control _  


With a groan, he drank the last bit of whiskey left in his glass before he leaned forward to pick up the whiskey bottle. He was about to pour himself another drink but stopped before any liquid actually touched the glass. He'd already had two glasses of the stuff and while he didn't have an early surgery in the morning, he wanted to spend some time with his daughter before going to the hospital. Besides, getting drunk wasn't the way to deal with this. He'd never relied on alcohol before and he wasn't about to start. He put the bottle and glass down on the coffee table before leaning back on the couch.

Drinking wasn't the answer but he had no clue what the answer was. He'd tried going back to his old ways. The first time they broke up, he chose to sleep his way through the hospital. He thought that a string of meaningless one night stands would help him forget Lexie. When that didn't work he thought trying a 'grown up' relationship would work. That hadn't worked either – probably because he hadn't really been committed to the idea and hadn't thought twice of sleeping with someone else. He'd also tried to convince her that he loved her and they should be together. That worked the second time he tried it and they got together for a time and were happy. Unfortunately like most good things in his life, that reconciliation didn't last long; it only lasted until his past came back to bite him in the ass and they found out Callie was pregnant.

The second time they broke up he'd known better so he'd skipped the sleeping around phase and, for the first time in his life, tried celibacy. Eventually, when he thought he was ready, he gave having a real, committed relationship a try once more. This time around, he was sure and, instead of forcing it, he met a good woman and allowed things to develop naturally. But that hadn't worked out either and now he was out of ideas. He'd tried everything and he was still as in love with her now as he'd ever been. He was sure he was going to go through the rest of his life loving her and needing her and not having her and that was the most depressing thought he'd ever had. Instead of reaching for the bottle this time, he reached for his phone and found that his finger was hovering over the speed dial number that still belonged to Lexie's cell phone before he consciously thought about it.

_I need you now  
And I don't know how  
I can do without  
I just need you now._

He stopped himself before he actually dialed her number and with a weary sigh put the phone down. He really wanted to hear her voice; he actually felt an almost unstoppable need to hear her, see her, be with her. But that wasn't going to happen and he needed to come to grips with the reality of needing her and not having her all over again. It was weird how fast life could change; one moment he was going along thinking he was over Lexie and happy to be with Julia and the next he was back right back at the beginning: completely in love with Lexie Grey, needing her as much as he'd ever had.

Beyond tired of thinking about the same thing, he decided that even if drinking wasn't the way to forget his troubles maybe sleeping was. With another groan, he got up and for a moment stood staring at the glass and whiskey on the coffee table. He was tempted to leave them where they were but decided that it would probably just depress him even more if he woke up to find them there. So, he took them to the kitchen to put away and then started towards the bedroom.

He'd barely taken a few steps when he heard a soft knock. He hesitated for a moment and looked at the door but when he didn't hear anything else he turned back towards his bedroom only to hear another soft knock. This time he was sure he'd heard it and started for the door with a thoughtful frown. It crossed his mind that it could be Callie or Arizona but if it were either of them, the knock wouldn't be soft. The same was true if it had been anyone with an emergency so he didn't hurry to get the door and was cautious when he opened it. Whatever he thought he'd find on the other side of the door, wasn't what he actually found.

_Guess I'd rather hurt than feel nothing at all_  
_Oh baby I need you now_

"Lexie," he whispered, more than a little surprised to see her there, biting her lip and wringing her hands.

"Mark," she said, just as softly. "Hi, I … I'm sorry to have come so late. I ah … I'm not," a horrible thought suddenly occurred to her, "interrupting anything, am I?" When he just shook his head, she continued, "I know I probably shouldn't be here. I really have no right to be here so late … or at any time, really … I just …" she trailed off and swallowed hard. The determination that had gotten her that far was still there but it was being overcome by the enormity of what was she was planning. She'd been so focused on getting there, seeing him, being with him that she'd neglected to come up with a plan. Now she was standing in front of him and she had no idea how to tell him what she needed to tell him. She took a deep breath, licked her lips and, in the end, just blurted it out.

"I love you," her eyes widened in surprise and locked with his equally wide and surprise eyes. They stood there, frozen, staring into each other's eyes for what seemed like an interminable moment. She'd meant to tell him of course but not quite that way. Then again, none of her plans had ever really worked when it came to Mark; so maybe she should just go for it. After another deep breath, she started talking, "I love you … I always have and I always will – I know that now. And I'm sorry … so sorry that I walked away, not once but twice but I was just so … so angry and hurt and afraid … and I just …it was going to be two children, Mark, two daughters you had with other women – two daughters and I'm … I'm not their mother. You have children and I'm not their mother – _I_ was supposed to the mother of your children and I'm not and I," she shook her head, "I just couldn't deal with that. Not that I wanted to have children back then or even right now – and that was something else I didn't know how to deal with …and I thought … I thought that I needed to go … that if I left and if I got over you and moved on … then I wouldn't hurt as much. But I was wrong; being away from you doesn't stop the pain, because not being with you doesn't mean that I no longer love you. I tried, though," she added in a whisper, "I really tried and I was even able to fool myself for awhile but getting over you," she went on in a stronger tone of voice, "getting over you is _not_ possible. Loving you is part of who I am – it has become such an integral part of me that I can no longer imagine any time when Lexie Grey doesn't love Mark Sloan. And I know that you have a girlfriend and that our problems haven't magically disappeared and I really have no right to even say anything but I love you – I'm so in love with you and I couldn't keep it inside anymore. I love you and I just …" Before she could say anything else, Mark took a step forward, placed his hand on her neck, thumb on her chin and fingers under her hair and pulled her into a kiss.

_It's a quarter after one I'm all alone and I need you now  
And I said I wouldn't call but I lost all control and I need you now  
And I don't know how I can do without  
I just need you now  
Baby, I need you now_


	3. Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now

**Disclaimer:** Nope, they're still not mine and neither is the song.

**A/N:** Well, here's the last chapter. I hope you enjoyed it.

**Chapter 3**

_Looking in your eyes I see a paradise  
This world that I found is too good to be true  
Standing here beside you want so much to give you  
This love in my heart that I'm feeling for you  
_

Lexie had been the last person Mark had expected to see outside his door at any time, let alone the middle of the night, so when he saw her there all he was capable of doing was whisper her name and stand there, staring at her. After thinking about her for most of the day to see her standing in front of him was nothing short of amazing and for a moment he actually thought he might be dreaming. And then she started speaking and he was sure he was dreaming because only in his dreams would Lexie come to his place in the middle of the night to tell him she loved him.

The more she talked, however, the more that she just went on with what appear to be a complete lack of a plan, the more he believed it was real. Not only was that of verbal deluge quintessentially Lexie but there was also no way that his imagination could have ever come up with that kind of disjointed declaration. So, even though it seemed too good to be true, by the time he heard 'I love you' for the seventh time, he knew that it was real. And that's when his instincts took over and without thinking about it he moved forward and kissed her. He must have surprised her because for a few moments she just stood there, frozen, but soon enough she gave a small whimper and threw her arms around his neck.

He moaned himself and, with one smooth movement, he pulled her into his body, walked back into his apartment, closed the door and backed her up against it. He'd been missing her for so long that he'd almost forgotten how perfect it felt to have her in his arms. It had been so long in fact, that he'd become resigned to never again kiss her or hold her and to suddenly be hugging and kissing her felt almost surreal. Needing an anchor in his rapidly turned up side down world, he pulled back to stare into her eyes; it was only when he saw the same love he felt reflected in her eyes that he finally and completely believed that it really was Lexie he was holding and that she had really just told him she still loved him. With that assurance, he went back to kissing her, trying to show her with his kiss, his hug and touch just how much he still loved her too.

_Let them say "We're crazy", I don't care about that  
Put your hand in my hand, baby, don't ever look back  
Let the world around us just fall apart  
Baby, we can make it if we're heart to heart  
_

Lexie wanted nothing more than to lose herself in his kiss and touch but her conscience wouldn't let her and it kept reminding her that he had a girlfriend – that there was a woman out there, Julia, who cared for him and didn't deserve to be betrayed and that Lexie wouldn't like to be the other woman. Of course, another part of her asked just what was it that she had imagined/wanted to happen after she told him she loved him and that when it came to Mark, she could never really be the other woman. But as much as she would have liked to just go with the moment and silenced her 'bad angel', the good one had a point and she found herself pulling away from Mark to remind him about Julia and why they couldn't keep going.

"Mark?" she said when they separated to take a breath.

"Hmmm?" he asked, obviously more interested in exploring her throat than in talking.

"Mark," she repeated, pulling away a little more. "What about Julia?"

"What about her?" from his tone of voice it was clear that he wasn't paying attention.

"Mark," this time her tone of voice finally got through and he pulled back to look into his eyes again and she saw the moment when her question registered.

"I broke up with her earlier this evening," he finally told her, his breathing not at all steady. Lexie stared into his eyes for a moment before she launched herself at him. She wondered what it meant that he'd broken up with Julia the same night she decided to come tell him she loved him but she was too distracted by being so close to him once more and knowing they could be even closer without it being wrong to say anything.

She knew that they really should talk, that their not talking and jumping straight back into a physical relationship the last time they've reconciled might have contributed to it not working out. But, once again, she was too intoxicated by his nearness to listen to logic. So, she allowed herself to drown in him until it dawned on her that as nice as it was to go at it against the wall, she wanted something more for their third-first time. She managed to pull away and walked a few steps beyond him before turning around and holding a hand out. She waited for him to take it and then led him to his bedroom. As she walked into his room, she decided that everything that had gone on in the past would stay there and that from then on it would be the two of them together - no matter what happened.

_And we can build this dream together, standing strong forever  
Nothing's gonna stop us now  
And if this world runs out of lovers, we'll still have each other  
Nothing's gonna stop us, nothing's gonna stop us now  
_

When Lexie pulled and walked away from him, Mark felt his heart clenched but before any hurt or confusion could set in he saw her turned around and hold out her hand. After having been the pursuer for so long and never actually getting anywhere, it felt right to, for once, be the one who followed while Lexie led – it soothed a hurt that had scabbed over a long time ago but had never really healed. So, while not a man to just follow anyone, Mark was more than happy to follow her - since he would follow her to hell and back following her to the bedroom wasn't really a big deal.

Once inside the bedroom, Lexie let his hand go and walked to the nightstand to turn on the bedside lamp. It was a little pathetic how happy it made him that she could still find her way in his apartment in the dark but it made him feel as if she was staking a claim on his apartment and on him which meant he could stake a claim on her. When the lamplight was on, she turned around, walked back and put her arms around him. He tried to get lost in the moment once more but doubts about what it all meant started to resurface and he ended up pulling away a bit.

"Lexie," he said, "Are you sure? I can't … I can't do this if you're not and afterwards you…"

"Mark," she stopped him; she placed one hand over his heart and the other cradle his jaw. "I love you," she repeated, "and this," she waved her hand to indicate their being together, "is neither a whim nor spurt of the moment and I will not regret it or blame you for it tomorrow morning. I've … I've being rethinking a lot of things lately but the one thing that remained constant throughout was that I love you and I need you – to be completely happy, I need you in my life. I can be content, professionally satisfied, I might even be able to find a measure of peace but I can't be really happy without you. And I know that no matter what the future throws at us, we can get through it if we stick together. And if I have anything to say about it, we will be together because I'm never again letting anything or anyone come between us."

Mark didn't know whether to laugh or cry so he just pulled her into his arms and kissed her. "God, I love you," he murmured as he started kissing her neck. She gasped and started to pull his t-shirt upwards. He pulled away long enough to take off his shirt and she took the opportunity to shrugged off her coat. Before either the t-shirt or coat hit the floor, Mark was busy pulling off her shirt and in a matter of moments, their clothes were strewn all over the floor. He picked her up, took her to bed and then made love to her until the rest of the world disappeared and they were the only two people that mattered.

_I'm so glad I found you, I'm not gonna lose you  
Whatever it takes I will stay here with you  
Take it to the good times, see it through the bad times  
Whatever it takes is what I'm gonna do  
_

"Do you have to work early tomorrow?" Lexie asked him as they were basking in the afterglow. She was snuggled into his side with her arm tossed across his torso.

"Umm," he answered, tightening his arms around her, "no, I don't have to go into later. I was thinking I'd spend some time with Sophia at some point. How about you?"

"I'm off tomorrow actually," she told him.

"We don't have to get up early, then. Good," Mark said, softly stroking her back. "We can spend the time making up for lost time."

"Yeah," she nodded but the mention of lost time reminded her of why they lost that time and she couldn't help but feel guilty once more. "I'm sorry," she said softly and had him frowning down at her.

"Sorry?" he repeated. "Why …?" he started to ask but she answered before he could finish.

"Because I'm the reason we lost all that time," she said into his chest. "If I hadn't …"

"Stop, Lexie," Mark urged as he shifted them so that they were face to face. "It wasn't just your fault; we both screwed up. There's no reason to appoint blame so can't we just leave all that in the past? There's nothing to gain by dwelling on it."

"But I was the one that walked, Mark," she insisted. "You knew that what we had was worth fighting for and you tried to fight for it – for us but I didn't want to and I wouldn't let you; if I'd just …"

"Lex," Mark said, stopping the babble. He hesitated for a moment before he started talking, "I love you, Lexie. You're the first and only woman I've loved – hell, you're only the third person I've ever loved. And yes, us breaking up, trying to move on was hard – probably the hardest, most painful thing I've ever had to do but I've always loved you. And I've always been grateful for you, grateful that you were in my life - even when we weren't together I was grateful to have known you. Knowing you, loving you made me a better man," he smiled tenderly and repeated what he'd once told her, "you helped put me back together, Lex. You know that saying 'it's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all?" When she nodded, he continued, "I never really understood it and certainly never agreed with it, but I get it now. I get it because I love you and now that I have you in my arms again, I don't care what I have to do, don't care what life throws at us or what people might say or do, I am never letting you go again."

"I don't want you to let me go," she said softly, smiling at him.

"Good," he nodded and leaned down to kiss her softly. "We've been through hell, Lex, twice and we've come back from it so, like you said, we can get through anything if we just stay together."

_Let them say, "We're crazy", what do they know?  
Put your arms around me, baby, don't ever let go  
Let the world around us just fall apart  
Baby we can make it if we're heart to heart_

"Yes, we can," she smiled at him before something else occurred to her.

"What is it?" he wanted to know.

"Nothing really," she shrugged, "it's just that Callie …" she hesitated, not sure how to say what she wanted to say and Mark jumped in with his own interpretation.

"I know that Sophia's something of a problem for you," he began but she immediately interrupted.

"What?" She pulled back and up and looked down at him with wide, surprised eyes, "No … that's not … how could you … Sophia's _not_ a problem for me. Why would you even think that?"

"I … well," Mark pushed himself up onto his elbows and looked bewildered. "You ended things when you found out Callie was pregnant so I just thought …"

"I ended things because _Callie_ was pregnant not because of _Sophia_," Lexie explained but from his face, it was clear Mark didn't understand the difference. "Sophia's an innocent, wonderful baby and I'm sure I could learn to love her in no time at all. My problem was that you got Callie pregnant; I have no problem with Sophia," she repeated. Mark wasn't sure he really understood the difference but maybe it didn't matter if he did or not.

"So, you don't resent her?" he sat up and asked, wanting to be completely sure.

"No, of course I don't," she shook her head decisively. "But … look I have no problem with Sophia but ... well, Callie, I know she's one of your best friends and Sophia's mom but …"

"You don't like Callie?" he guessed.

"It's more like she doesn't like me," she corrected.

"How do you know that?" he wanted to know.

"I just do," she shrugged. "But even if I'm wrong, I know she really likes Julia and she really likes you with Julia and I'm pretty sure she'll think Julia will be better for Sophia than I. I just don't think she's going to be very happy to know you broke up with Julia and are with me again. And I really don't want to cause problems between you and her …"

"You don't have to worry about that," Mark interrupted firmly. "Callie might be one of my best friends and Sophia's mother but she has no say in my personal life. I told you," he added, cradling her face and looking deeply into her eyes, "I don't care what she or Derek or anyone else says, thinks or does, I don't care what surprises come from our pasts or what troubles we might find in the future – hell, Lex, the world could crumble around us and I still wouldn't let you go. So, don't worry about what Callie might think or say because it doesn't really matter; the only thing that matters is that we're together and that we'll stay that way, okay?"

_And we can build this dream together, standing strong forever  
Nothing's gonna stop us now  
And if this world runs out of lovers, we'll still have each other  
Nothing's gonna stop us, nothing's gonna stop us now  
_

"Okay," Lexie agreed with a radiant smile before she threw herself at him. With an oomph, Mark fell back onto the bed; he wrapped his arms around her and flipped them over so that she was underneath him. Mark started kissing her before they finish rolling and then they made the rest of the world disappear once more.

She was falling asleep, wrapped up in his arms, when something occurred to her that she'd never before considered.

"Maybe it was worth it," she murmured. Mark was half asleep but somehow heard her and stirred behind her.

"What?" he asked, his voice slurred with sleep. "What was worth it?"

"The time we spent apart," she answered after a moment, "maybe we needed that time, we needed to lose each other to be certain of what we felt. Maybe we needed to be with other people to be completely sure that we're happiest with each other." When Mark didn't say anything in response, Lexie asked, "Don't you think?"

"I guess … I guess that might be true," he said was obvious he wasn't really convinced.

"But you don't think so," she concluded.

"It's not that it's just that," he tried to explain, "I was always sure of what I felt for you, Lex." He sounded almost apologetic. She fell silent and he could feel she was feeling bad. "Lexie," he started to say, not sure what he would say to make her feel better.

"It's ironic, isn't it?" she asked, speaking over him. "I know that most people thought that you'd be the one to mess up and that I would be the one to end up hurt but I was the one that ended up hurting you…"

"Lex," Mark protested, "we hurt each other. And I did mess up …"

"We both messed up," she corrected, "but the difference is that you wanted to make it right. You believed that we should be together – you had faith in us, in our relationship and I didn't." She paused for a moment before she continued, "it's not that I ever stopped loving you but …"

"But?" he prompted, more than a little curious.

"I think," she said slowly, trying to explain something she'd just began to understand herself, "I was afraid…"

"Of me?" Mark interrupted, surprised.

"No, not of you," she shook her head, "Of me, of the strength of my feelings for you, of how fast our relationship developed and how intense it got. I had a plan, Mark, a life plan I'd spent years making but then there you were and the plan no longer worked and I started to feel a little lost. But you seemed to have your life figured out – you were already an established surgeon and you started thinking about having a family."

"And you weren't ready," he mused, thinking of her telling him they were at different places in their lives.

"I didn't think I was," she corrected, "though I guess that amounts to the same thing. I always thought I'd get marry and have kids one day but when you started thinking about it, I got scared I would lose myself. You were already Dr. Mark Sloan, one of the best plastic surgeons in the country and that wasn't ever going to change but when things got so complicated and difficult I just … I think I got scared that if we continued as we were, I would lose myself in you, in our relationship – that I would no longer be Dr. Alexandra Grey but Mark Sloan's girlfriend …"

_All that I need is you  
All that I ever need and all that I want to do  
Is hold you forever, forever and ever_

"What would you think that?" Mark was so surprised and saddened that he couldn't keep quiet anymore. "I love you, Lexie; I love your strength, your intelligence and independence. I would never want you to change or be less than who you are. If you did, then you wouldn't be the Lexie I fell in love with. I just wouldn't …"

"I know, Mark," she turned around and placed her fingers over his lips, quieting him. Up until then, they'd been spooning and not having to face him had made opening up easier but the distress in his voice made her turn around so she could look him in the eye. "I know that. I never thought you'd made me or even want me to change. I guess … I guess I just thought it'd be something that would happen on its own."

"So, what's changed?" Mark asked, staring deeply into her eyes. "We're still at different places in our lives. It could even be said that we're further apart since I now have a kid."

"My perspective," she answered simply, "that's what's changed. I've seen Meredith be Derek's wife and Zola's mother and still be true to herself. I've spent time with Zola and realized that you may not be ready for a child but that doesn't mean you can't love them and take care of them. And you don't need me to be Sophia's mother, you just need me to help you be her father and that I can and want to do. As for everything else, I realized that everything else is negotiable but being together is non-negotiable because all I need to be happy is you. All that time without you was worth it because now I _know_ that what seemed insurmountable before is nothing when compare to not having you. Nothing is worse than not being with you so whatever issues or drama come up, we'll deal with them."

"Then," he said in a voice rough with emotion, "all that pain and time wasn't wasted at all."

"No, it wasn't," she said with softly, "It was hard but I don't regret a moment of it and I would do it all over again if that's what it takes to end up here, wrapped up in your arms."

"Yeah," he murmured as he drew her closer, "nothing that came before matters as long as we're together now."

"Together," she whispered as their lips met. Then, for the third time that night, they made love and the rest of the world faded away.

_And we can build this dream together, standing strong forever  
Nothing's gonna stop us now  
And if this world runs out of lovers, we'll still have each other  
Nothing's gonna stop us, nothing's gonna stop us now_


End file.
